Tally register



Nov. 12, 1957 G. F. FOX

I TALLY REGISTER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 17; 1954 INVENTOR G EORGE F. FOX

ATTORNEYS G; F. FOX

TALLY REGISTER Nov. 12, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed- Feb. l7. 1954 v INVENTOR .G EORGE F. FOX

ATTORNEY United States Patent O TALLY REGISTER George F. Fox, Alexandria, La.

Application February 17, 1954, Serial No. 411,033

4 Claims. (Cl. 235--113) (Granted under Title 35, U. S. Code (1952), sec. 266) A non-exclusive, irrevocable, royalty-free license in the invention herein described, for all governmental purposes, throughout the world, with the power to grant sublicenses for such purposes, is hereby granted to the Government of the United States of America.

This invention relates to a tally register or counter.

in selecting trees for cutting into sawtirnber or pulpwood it is necessary to select trees for sampling for volume computation. One of the most important factors to be considered is that the system must prohibit any personal bias from entering into the selection of the sample tree. The tally registerdescribed here has been devised with this consideration in mind.

One object of this invention is to provide a tally register that may be set in advance to stop when a predetermined number of trees have been tallied.

Another object of this invention is to provide a t-ally register that may quickly and easily be reset to the countstarting point.

These and other objects which will become apparent are accomplished by means of the device described in the following specification and in the accompanying drawing, in which similar numerals represent like parts.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 represents a front view of my tally register as completely assembled.

Figure 2 represents a rear view of the same.

Figure 3 shows the tally register assembled for operation, but with the front cover removed and portions of the dials cut away to show the internal construction.

Figure 4 is an exploded view of the tens dial assembly, including the blocking pin and the dial pawl releasing means.

Figure 5 is similar to Figure 3 except that it shows a modification whereby it is possible to reset both the tens and hundreds dials by reverse rotation.

Figure 6 is similar to Figure 2 except that it shows the rear view of the modification of Figure 5.

My invention consists in so modifying the structure of a conventional flat type tally register by providing a limit stop so as to externally lock the counting mechanism after a predetermined number of objects have been counted. The invention further consists in so modifying the dial pawls as to enable resetting by turning the dial backward to zero instead of turning it forward past the 9 to return it to zero. In order for one to fully understand the nature of my invention it will first be necessary to understand the construction and operation of a conventional counter such as was modified in making my invention.

One type of conventional counter comprises a back plate 1 which serves as the mounting for the entire mechanism. A front cover 2, provided with a window 3 serves to encase the device. The latter may conveniently be carried by means of ring 4 secured to back plate 1.

The register shown is provided with three dials 5, 6, and 7, to record the units, tens, and hundreds digits, re spectively. Each dial is mounted on individual rotatable 2,812,908 Patented Nov. 12, 1957 shafts 8, 9 and 10. Each shaft further carries secured thereto a ratchet wheel, as shown by 11, 12, and 13. Shaft 8 further is provided with a single tooth 14 which engages the tens ratchet wheel 12 and causes it to advance one tooth, and hence one digit for each complete revolution of the units dial. A similar single tooth 15 on the tens shaft engages the hundreds ratchet wheel 13 and causes it to advance one digit for each complete revolution of the tens dial.

The mechanism is actuated by pressing down with a finger on plunger 16 which protrudes from case 2. Spring 17, acting on plunger 16 through pin 18, keeps the plunger in a normally inoperative position. The plunger is provided with a lateral extension 19 which engages a tooth of the units ratchet wheel 11, thus advancing the latter one units digit each time the plunger is pressed. A second extension 20 of the plunger engages another tooth of the units ratchet wheel 11 when pressure is released, functioning as a pawl and thus preventing reverse rotation of the wheel. Pressure of spring 21 which bears against the teeth of ratchet wheel 11 provides sufficient friction to prevent further deviation of the units dial from any given setting. Ratchet pawls 22 and 23, both pivoted on pivot 24, engage ratchet wheels 12 and 13, respectively, and prevent reverse rotation of these wheels. A single spring 25 provides the pressure needed to keep pawls 22 and 23 engaged with the teeth of their respective ratchet wheels.

Shafts 9 and 10, on which the tens and hundreds dials and their ratchet wheels are mounted, protrude through the back of the instrument and are each provided with a knob 26 and 27, respectively, for the purpose of resetting the dials to zero. in the conventional register as here described, the dials can only be reset to zero by first operating the plunger the required number of times until the units dial reaches Zero, then advancing the tens dial through its highest number and then to Zero by turning knob 26 in a forward direction, and finally repeating the latter operation with the hundreds dial by turning knob 27 in a forward direction. These steps are necessary since the dial pawls 22 and 23 prevent turning the tens and hundreds dial knobs in their reverse directions.

In order to produce a register capable of locking after any predetermined interval, as for example, at 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, or 100, as illustratrated in Figure 2, the tens knob 26 is provided with a stop wire 28 secured to it, and bent so that its end 29 operates close to the surface of back plate 1, but without actually touching it. Since the knobs themselves turn together with the dials, the position of the stop wire at any given time corresponds to a certain reading of the dial. A series of small reference holes 30 whose centers are on a circle concentric with the axis of the shaft carrying the tens dials is drilled in the back plate, the radius of this circle being coextensive with the end 29 of stop wire 28. These holes are located at points along the circle corresponding to the intervals for which it is desired to set the counter. The holes are tapped to accommodate a small fillister head screw 31. This screw is screwed into the particular hole representing a specific desired interval. Thus, as shown in Figure 2, the screw is in the hole marked 40. In a preferred form of the invention, the holes are so located that, when the stop wire reaches the head of the screw and is blocked from further motion thereby, the dial actually reads one number, less, e. g., 39 for the position illustrated. This will warn the operator that the next tree, or other object counted is the end of the interval. If desired, the holes may be located to stop the dial at exactly the end of the interval. However, with the present type of counter, it is advantageous to place the stop screw at the 19,, 29, 39, etc., posi- 3. tion since, to clear the units dial, the latter need then be advanced only one digit to return to the zero setting.

As pointed out previously, the conventional counter can only be reset to zero by advancing each dial in consecutive order beginning with the units. Since the stop screw 31 prevents further forward rotation of the tens shaft, it becomes necessary that the counter be able to be reset by turning the dial backwards to zero. This has been accomplished in accordance with a further feature of my invention. In a preferred form, the tens dial pawl 22 is provided with a lever 32 secured thereto in any desired manner, as by soldering. The manner of securing the lever to the pawl obviously is not critical. This lever is long enough to protrude through a hole in the side of cover 2. By pulling back on the lever, dial pawl 22 is disengaged from sprocket Wheel 22, permitting the knob to be rotated backward. As a result of the described construction, resetting the counter becomes a simple operation. For example, as illustrated in Figure 2, stop wire 28 has reached a position corresponding to a tally of 39. The counter is held in one hand, the lever 32 pulled back with the thumb of the same hand, releasing sprocket whee 12. By means of knob 26 the tens dial is turned back one digit to produce a reading of 29; units dial is then advanced one digit to produce a reading of 30; then, with lever 32 pulled back, the tens dial is turned back to zero, clearing the instrument for a new count. 7

My modification not only makes it possible to count in intervals of multiples of ten, but without further modification can be used for any desired interval. Thus, for example, if an interval of i is needed, the screw 31 is set in the position, the units dial set at 5, and counting is begun. When the count of 19 is reached, the operator knows that the next object counted is the fifteenth.

Additional modifications falling Within my invention are possible Without departing from the scope thereof. For example, a dial pawl lever 33 may also be provided on pawl 23 to make possible the resetting of the hundreds dial by reverse turning. Furthermore, if the instrument is to be used to count intervais in the hundreds, a set of reference holes 34 similar to that surrounding the tens shaft may be provided around the hundreds shaft. In that event, knob 27 would be provided with a stop Wire 36 similar to stop wire 28, and a stop screw would be set in any one of the series of holes 3% to enable counting of intervals from 100 tolOGO. it is understood that stop screw 31 would have to be removed.

Thus, if an interval of 300 is desired, the stop screw 35 is placed in the 300 hole. The register is run to 299, at which point the screw blocks further rotation of wire 36. The register can then be reset by releasing pawls 22 and 23 by means of levers 32 and 33, respectively, and

turning the tens and hundreds dials backward to their zero setting.

I claim:

1. A tally register of the class described comprising a casing having a back plate and a front face, said face being provided with a Window to expose portions of a series of internally rotatably mounted interconnected dials; external means for actuating a first of said dials; internal means secured to the shaft of each of said dials adapted to cause a one digit displacement of a succeeding dial after a complete revolution of a preceding dial; internal means adapted to prevent reverse rotation of each of said dials; external means for resetting the dials to zero reading; external limit stop means removably secured to the back plate at a predetermined point representing a desired reading of the dials; means secured to and extending from the aforesaid resetting means adapted to contact said limit stop after a predetermined count; and means for releasing the reverse rotation preventing means to permit resetting to zero by reverse rotation of the dials.

' 2. A tally register of the class described comprising a casing having a back plate and a front face, said front face being provided with a Window to expose portions of a units dial, a tens dial, and a hundreds dial, said dials being interconnected and internally rotatably mounted Within the casing; ratchet means secured to the shafts of each of said units, tens, and hundreds dial; external plunger means coacting with the units dial ratchet adapted to advance the units dial in steps of single digits; means secured to the units dial shaft adapted to engage the tens dial ratchet means to advance the tens dial one digit for each complete revolution of the units dial; means secured to the tens dial shaft adapted to engage the hundreds dial ratchet means to advance the hundreds dial one digit for each complete revolution of the tens dial; individual pawl means within the casing adapted to engage each of said units, tens, and hundreds ratchet means to prevent reverse rotation of each of the units, tens, and hundreds shaft; means for maintaining said pawl means in constant engagement with said ratchet means; means secured to external extensions of each of the tens and hundreds shaft to permit manual rotation of said shafts; limit stop means removably secured to the back plate at one of a series of predetermined points representing a predetermined desired reading of the dials; means secured to and extending laterally from one of the external shaft extensions and adapted to engage said limit stop after a predetermined count, thereby preventing further forward rotation of the dials; and externally extending means secured to the dial ratchet pawls whereby said pawls may be released from engagement with said dial ratchet means to permit reverse manual rotation of the dials.

3. In a tally register comprising a units dial, a series of higher order dials interconnected with said units dial, a first external means for manually rotating the units dial, further external means for manually rotating each of said higher order dials, and internal means for preventing reverse rotation of each said dials, the improvements which comprise: external limit stop means removably secured to the back of said tally register at one of a series of predetermined points representing a desired reading of the dials, means secured to and extending laterally from said further external manual rotating means adapted to engage said limit stop after a predetermined count, thereby preventing further forward rotation of the dials, and externally extending means secured to the internal reverse rotation preventing means of the higher order dials adapted to release said reverse rotation preventing means, thereby to permit reverse rotation of the higher order dials.

4. A tally register of the class described comprising a casing having a back plate and a front face; interconnected units and tens dials; a first external means for manually rotating the units dial; a second external means for manually rotating the tens dial; internal means for preventing reverse rotation of said units and tens dials;

external limit stop means removably secured to the back plate at one of a series of predetermined points around the second external manual rotating means representing a desired reading of the dials; means secured to and extending laterally'from said second external manual rotating means adaptedto engage the limit stop after a predetermined count, thereby preventing further rotation of the dials; and externally extending means secured to the internal means for preventing reverse rotation of the tens dial adapted to release said reverse rotation preventing means, thereby to permit reverse rotation and resetting of the tens dial.

References Cited in the file of this patent 

